Rain
by Jess.91
Summary: LilyScorpius. A storm, a half wish, and a memorial plaque, and somehow they were back to a night they should never see. Sometimes, the past can set you on the right path for your future.
1. Chapter 1

Yes, I've finally managed to start another multi-chapter story. As anyone who reads my Jigsaw Pieces will know, I had a little trouble with this, and while I'm still no completly satisfied with it, I've decided to go ahead and post it.

Rain

_Summary: LilyScorpius. A storm, a half wish, and a memorial plaque, and somehow they were back to a night they should never see. Sometimes, the past can set you on the right path for your future._

Chapter 1

She loved the rain. Her brothers always thought she was weird for wanting to stand in the garden whenever it rained, but Lily Potter had long since stopped caring about what they thought.

This wasn't just rain, though, Lily noticed. This was a storm. And here she was, stuck inside, doing homework. Storms were even better than just rain, with the crash of thunder and the flash of lightening.

There were only a handful of people in the common room, which Lily had taken as a sign she was supposed to catch up on her homework. Instead, she was staring out of the window, scanning the sky for a fork of lightening, listening intently for the thunder.

Thunder rolled. Delighted, Lily started to count. She got to seven before lightening flashed, so brief she could have missed it if she'd blinked.

"It's no use." She said aloud, and tossed her quill onto the desk before standing up.

"Where are you going?" Her best friend, Cyndra, asked instantly, looking up from her own work.

"Outside." Lily replied.

"Lily, you don't even have a cloak." Cyndra pointed out impatiently, far too used to Lily's rain fascination to ask more questions.

"Doesn't matter. I'll be fine."

"You'll spend all next week with a cold. You know you will. You've just got rid of one, and all you do when you're sick is complain. To me."

"Fine. I'll...stand at the doors. I'll stay dry." Lily replied.

Cyndra rolled her eyes. "Sure you will."

"I _will._" Lily replied, half-annoyed, half-amused. That was the trouble with being friends with someone for over four years. They knew you too well. "Look, if Hugo comes back, don't let him copy my work, 'k? He's good at magic, he's just too lazy to do the work."

"I won't."

"Or yours." Lily added, with a little smirk that caused her friend to flush. "I promised my aunt Hermione I'd make him do his own work this year, instead of copying mine. O.W.Ls and everything."

"I know you did."

"So don't let your little crush break my promise."

"Lily, if you're going, go." Cyndra said, her face decidedly red now. "You'll miss your storm."

Lily glanced at the window, saw the rain was still pounding against the glass, and decided she could tease her friend later. "See you in a bit." She said, then made her way to the portrait hole.

Lily hesitated at the front doors, wondering if she'd get into trouble standing with one door open. Wouldn't want to make a mess, she reasoned. Had to go outside. She pulled open the left door, slipped outside and pulled it shut, deciding she'd stand against the door, where the castle would provide some shelter.

She'd expected the grounds to be deserted, as they usually were when she ventured outside in the rain or in storms. She certainly didn't expect someone else to be stood, leaning against the other door.

The boy was instantly recognisable, with the white blond hair, now wet, and the blue eyes she saw when he turned to look at her.

She knew Scorpius Malfoy vaguely, firstly through Teddy, as Andromeda and Narcissa had long ago made up, and Narcissa and her son and grandson had often been found at Teddy's birthday parties. Secondly, he and Al were friends.

"Hi." Scorpius said, looking a little surprised. "I didn't think anyone else would be out here."

"Me neither." Lily replied, with a nervous smile. "Ah...I have a weird thing about rain. Storms. Sometimes I come out here when it's like this and just...watch." She was aware that she didn't have to explain herself to him, and yet it felt as though she should. "There's never been anyone else out here though." She added after a brief pause. He smiled, and she knew he'd heard the question behind the statement.

"It sounds stupid." He told her, and shrugged. "Sometimes, feeling the cold is the only way I know I'm real." She blinked, and he smiled again. "I said it sounds stupid." He'd never told anyone this before, and he was slightly uneasy now. Why on earth had he told her?

"It's just that...my friends all think they know me." He added, because he felt the need to explain properly. "Everyone does. And they treat me...well, people tend to either treat me like royalty or scum. The rain treats me like it treats everyone."

"That doesn't sound stupid." Lily said softly. "It makes sense."

"I guess you know what it's like to be treat like royalty." He said, after a brief silence. "The whole school loves the Potters."

"At least you've got the people who hate you, a bit of variety. Me and my brothers - and even my cousins - know that half the people around us are only around us because of our surname. And apart from a handful of Slytherins, everyone's always...really nice to us. Sometimes, I feel really fake. Or like I'm not...not good enough, not what I should be, what they expect me to be."

She caught herself then, and stopped talking, realising she was dangerously close to pouring her heart out. To Scorpius Malfoy, of all people. She barely knew the guy, even if he was Teddy's cousin - twice removed, or something along those lines.

"And I don't know why I'm telling you." She said, because he was looking at her as though waiting for her to finish. "Sorry." She looked back out, over the grounds, and caught another flash of lightening.

He was watching her, and saw the way the white light lit up her face in time for him to catch a bright smile.

"Maybe because I'm listening." He murmured, and she turned back to him.

"Maybe." She nodded. "Maybe because...It felt like you might understand." She shook her head then, as though trying to clear water from it. "I don't even know what I'm on about."

He smiled, but didn't speak. The two of them watched the sky in silence, listening to the thunder and the sound the rain made as it landed, watching the lightening cut through the dark grey sky. Finally, Lily glanced at her watch and sighed.

"I better go back inside. I have homework to finish, and I told Cyndra I wouldn't be long."

"Storm's nearly over anyway." Scorpius told her, and pulled open the door, letting her through first.

They walked a little way inside the entrance hall, then Lily stopped in front of the huge golden plaque fixed to the way. Engraved upon it, in neat black writing, were names. Too many names, Lily had often thought. Names of all those who'd died in the Battle of Hogwarts. Underneath, in slightly smaller letters, were more names, of those who'd died before that final battle, lost their lives to the cause.

"It's hard to imagine that one night could take so many." Lily murmured aloud. She was talking to herself, having forgotton Scorpius was with her, and so his voice made her jump.

"It's hard to imagine one wizard could destroy so much."

"That's true." Lily said, and found her own name on the second section of the memorial plaque. It was still strange to see it, even though she knew it meant her grandmother. "Does your dad - or your grandparents - do they ever talk about what it was like...on his side?" Lily asked carefully, aware that he could be offended.

"No. My dad once told me that he regrets it, hates his dark mark. Once, I asked what Voldemort looked like. My dad said they was no point describing him, because words weren't enough. He said Voldemort was terrifying."

"White skin." Lily murmured, still looking at the plaque. It was too easy to pick out familiar names, names she'd heard often growing up, names she was related to. "So white it looked like bone. Scarlet eyes. Snake-like face. High, cold laugh. That's what my dad told me. He said words weren't enough, too."

"Do you think it's weird that a part of me wants to see for myself?" He asked casually.

"Probably." Lily nodded, a hint of laughter in her voice. She reached up, touched a hand to the cool metal. "Is it weird that a part of me wants to see that night, what it was really like?"

"Probably." Scorpius replied, smirking slightly, and he, too, reached up a hand to touch the plaque.

The moment he made contact, the centre of the plaque began to swirl, the metal twisting and spinning, causing them both to jump back.

"What did you do?" Lily demanded instantly.

"I didn't do anything." Scorpius replied. He took another step back, pulling her with him. The distance didn't matter, however. The twisting gold centre still managed to pull them into it.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you all for the feedback. I think I better worn you, we have a shaky start here, but it's gets better. When I wrote this I wasn't entirly sure where the story was going; I've got it pretty much worked out now.

Chapter 2

Lily closed her eyes when the spinning got too much. When her feet finally found solid ground, and the dizziness passed, she opened her eyes again, to find herself in the same spot she had been, looking at the same wall.

The plaque was gone.

"We broke it." She stated, her eyes wide. "My dad's going to kill me."

"We can't have broke it." Scorpius muttered. "We must have...gone somewhere else. Where are we?"

"We're at Hogwarts." Lily snapped, looking around. When her gaze landed on the open doors to the great hall, she saw it was full of people. "But...that doesn't make sense." She muttered. It was only when she realised she half recognised some of them that an impossible, terrifying thought occured to her. "Maybe a better question is when are we?"

"When? That doesn't make sense -" Scorpius said impatiently, turning round to see what she was looking at. He stopped talking abruptly.

"Dinner's over." He said finally.

"They're not eating. They're talking." Lily said carefully. "And in a minute, lots of those people are going to come out here. Scorpius, I think we've gone back. To that night."

"The - the battle, you mean?" Scorpius asked nervously, and Lily nodded. "But - we can't be. Big sheets of gold don't have the power to take us back in time." He looked around again, then lifted a hand to the back of his head. "Maybe I hit my head."

"Maybe I'll hit your head if you don't shut up and let me think." Lily muttered. "Maybe there's some kind of spell on the plaque. I mean, we were talking about wanting to see for ourselves, right? So maybe the plaque thought we meant it -"

"Thought? It can't _think_. It's a big piece of metal -"

"Just because you can't see it's brain, doesn't mean it doesn't have one." Lily told him, annoyed. And then, quieter, muttered an old family lesson. "Never trust something unless you can see where it keeps it brain." She looked back at the wall where the plaque should have been. "Too late for that."

"What?"

"Nothing. I just - Hey -" As a sea of students surged out of the great hall, Scorpius grabbed Lily's arm and pulled her into the shadows.

"Sorry, I just didn't think we should be seen." He said, when she glared at him as she brushed her wet hair from her face.

"Maybe they can't see us." Lily replied thoughtfully, scanning the crowd as it moved swiftly up the stairs, panic choking the air. "I mean, are we really back in time, or in a memory? My dad said when you go in memories, the people there can't see you...But who's memory would it be? Maybe we are really back here..." She trailed off, aware her thoughts were simply circling around.

"Well I don't think it's something we should test." Scorpius told her uneasily. "If we mess with the past..."

"Yeah, OK, I know." Lily nodded.

"How do you think we get home? Back to our time?" He asked, looking around, almost as if he expected a convenient door back to their time.

"Maybe we can't. We wished to see the night." Lily cast her eyes over the students, fighting to get up the stairs. "Maybe we're stuck here till it's over."

"What? But - but what if one of us gets killed?" Scorpius asked, horrified. Lily looked up at him.

"We'll just have to be careful, won't we." She shrugged.

"Careful?" Scorpius hissed. "Careful won't stop the killing curse."

"That's true." Lily replied, rather enjoying his wide-eyed panic. The sadistic side to her rarley got fufillment.

"Right." He said finally. "We'll just stay here, hidden, until -"

"That's not why we're here." Lily said. If they really were stuck here until the night was over, there was no way she was hiding. "We're here to see, and maybe if we don't see we can't get back."

"You're not serious? One of us could get killed!" Scorpius cried, his voice ever so slightly louder than it had been. He realised, and looked around to make sure no one had heard him.

Thankfully, the students were far too preoccupied with the thought of impending death.

"Look, I want to see this, OK?" Lily told him candidly. Her hair was curling slightly from the rain, her hazel eyes fixed on his, and she looked so innocent to him. "I wasn't just saying it, and I know it seems stupid and reckless and...but we're here. We're here to see it. If you want to stay here, hidden, then fine. But not me."

She turned, and, keeping into the shadows, started forward.

"Wait - wait." Scorpius said quickly. "I'm not letting you go off alone."

"And why not?" She demanded, aware of the "you're-a-girl-you-need-protecting" tone of his voice. It was the same tone her brothers used all the time.

"For one thing, your brothers would kill me if I let you get yourself killed." Scorpius replied flatly, and fought a smirk when her eyes flashed in anger.

"I can take care of myself!"

"I believe that, but you're still only a fifth year. Al's a mate, and I won't let his little sister die. Especially not in the past."

"You guys aren't that close." Lily muttered darkly, causing a surprisingly quick smile from the older boy.

"It's a guy thing. Besides, Teddy would kill me too. Plus, I've known you since you were little, and I'm not going to let you run off alone."

"You saw me once a year at Teddy's birthday parties!" Lily snapped.

"And for another, I want to see it too." He paused for a moment. "You know the story more than I do. What's happening right now?" Lily hesitated, wondering whether to argue a little, but decided there wasn't much point.

"They're evacuating the younger students, and the ones who don't want to fight. The people still in the great hall are making a sort of battle plan." Lily said, frowning slightly. "Ah...in a little while, they'll spread out, some of them going outside, some of them going to all the passages and towers and stuff. My dad'll head up to the room of requirment, meet my aunt and uncle, and my mum. Oh, and Teddy's mum."

"They die tonight, don't they? Teddy's parents?" He asked quietly.

"Yes. Ah, um, Teddy's mum goes off to find his dad. My mum has to wait outside the room, while my dad and aunt and uncle look for a Horcrux in the room of requirement."

"The diadum." Scorpius murmured. "And that's when my dad..." He trailed off, sounding half-ashamed, and Lily simply nodded.

"Um, mum was in there for protection, but when...our parents were in the room, she got involved in the fight." Lily smiled slightly. "She says it was only because she had to, that she didn't plan to, but I don't think she had any intention of staying in there."

"Right. So what was happening with the rest of the castle?"

"It was at war." Lily replied softly. "Death Eaters were storming the castle. The begining of the end."

Scorpius allowed her a moment to be amazed at the enormity of the situation, then spoke. "Where do you want to go?" She blinked at the sound of his voice, then looked at him and shrugged.

"I don't know. Maybe we should wait till they've...oh..." She trailed of and shrank further into the shadows when her dad - younger, obviously, than she'd ever seen him - ran out of the great hall. It was strange enough to see her parents as teenagers in photos, but in solid, real, form, it was even stranger. Lily watched her father join the crowd, and disappear.

"Lily?" Scorpius said, and she shook herself slightly.

"OK. Ah, let's wait until they've all got out of the hall, started fighting."

"Then what? Where are we supposed to go? What are we supposed to do?" Scorpius demanded. "Can we help? Can we die? What the hell are we supposed to do here?"

"Yes, Scorpius, because I have all the answers." Lily replied sarcastically. "I didn't bring us here. And I'm sorry I don't understand it, or have a plan. Calm yourself down, will you?"

She turned away from him and back to the great hall, trying to see what was going on inside.

"Sorry." Scorpius muttered beside her. Lily nodded curtly. Then, suddenly, she turned back to him.

"Disillusionment charm." She said, and he brightened. "Can you do them? I haven't learnt them yet, but it'd keep us hidden, wouldn't it -?"

"Yes - here " He pulled out his wand, muttered something as he tapped her head. "They'll keep us hidden, even if they won't keep us alive."

"Drama queen." Lily muttered.


	3. Chapter 3

Hugs to my reviewers. This could have been better, I know.

Chapter 3

"I want to follow my dad." Lily said suddenly. Scorpius couldn't see her, but he turned to the sound of her voice.

"Why? I thought we wanted to see -"

"I want to see what my mum looks like." Lily replied simply. "And Teddy's mum."

"The room gets set on fire, though, doesn't it?" Scorpius asked her.

"Yeah, but we won't go inside." Lily told him, as though it was obvious. "We'll just wait, so I can see my mum, and Tonks, and then we'll check out the rest of the castle."

He hesitated, and she sighed.

"Alright, you wait here, or go somewhere else or something." She told him, fully aware that he wouldn't. "_I'm _going after my dad."

He heard her footsteps as she ran towards the stairs.

"Wait!" He hissed. "Lily - I'm coming with you -"

She stopped, which was good as he couldn't see where she was.

"Where are you?" She asked suddenly, and he followed her voice. "This is so weird..."

"Here." He replied, and jumped when her hand grabbed his arm. They ran up the stairs together, with her still clutching his arm so not to be separated. They reached the room of requirement, breathless, in time to see Harry, Ron and Hermione exit. Lily smiled when she saw them, then again when she saw her mother by a window, firing jinxes. Then she noticed the person next to her.

"_Tonks_." She breathed, and stepped closer. Pictures, Lily thought, couldn't capture the bright hair, the pretty face. But everyone had always said how bright and happy Tonks was...now she was unmistakably terrified, worried, nervous.

Lily was aware of people talking, but her attention was on her mother and Tonks, until Ginny spoke.

"As long as it's not any of our lot!" She said, obviously in response to what one of the other's had said, then sent a jinx out of the window.

"Good girl!" Lily turned to see a grey-haired man leading people past.

"Aberforth. Dumbledore's brother." She murmured with a smile. He called something - she barely understood - and then Tonks spoke.

"Have you seen Remus?" She was clearly desperate, and Aberforth's response caused her already pale face to drain of all colour.

"Tonks," Ginny said, "Tonks, I'm sure he's OK -"

But Teddy's mother was already running. Lily watched her, knowing she was heading to her death, and fought the urge to call out to her, to tell her to get back home to her baby.

Lily turned back to see her mother watching the others, who were walking back and forth in front of the room of requirement. When the door appeared, they ran through it.

Ginny sent another curse out of the window, then turned back to the door, biting her lip. Lily knew she was worried for the others, and was half considering going in with them.

Then the castle shook, the whole building, and Lily stumbled backwards, as did Ginny. Someone screamed, not far away, someone yelled, and Ginny hesitated, glanced back at the door.

Another scream, and Ginny ran towards it.

Barely seconds later, as if from nowhere, three figures appeared near the door to the room of requirement.

"My dad." Lily heard Scorpius murmur, and she looked at Draco Malfoy, thin, pale, and scared looking. He looked a lot like Scorpius, she mused, although right now he looked slightly ill. Scorpius watched him with fascination.

"Maybe we should just go." Draco said to Crabbe and Goyle, the slightest hint of a whine in his voice. "Join the Dark Lord. We don't need to take Potter, the Dark Lord'll find him -"

The larger boys ignored him, and entered the room. Draco followed, albeit reluctantly.

"Idiots." Lily muttered darkly. "They could have ruined everything. No offence." She added to Scorpius.

"None taken." He replied. "What now? Do you want to wait?" He didn't. He didn't want to see that boy, the weak willed, whiney boy he'd just glimpsed, exit the room. Scorpius didn't want to see the person his father had been, didn't want to think of his dad in that way.

"Do you?" Lily asked, moving to the window her mother had stood by. She could see groups of fighters in the grounds, giants, and flashes of light. People were dying out there. Scorpius hesitated, and he, too, saw a flash of green. It wasn't safe to mingle with the chaos.

"We're safer here." Scorpius replied reluctantly.

And so they waited.

----

_Teddy's fifteenth birthday party. Lily was five, and tired, because the party had been going on for hours and no one was paying her any more attention. She yawned loudly, then flopped down onto a beanbag her grandma had conjured up a few hours ago. She didn't notice Scorpius Malfoy until her asked her if she was OK. He was eight._

_"I'm tired." She told him._

_"Go to sleep." He replied, and she shook her head. "If I fall asleep I'll miss the party."_

_"You look like you're gonna fall asleep anyway." He reported, to which she bit her lip lightly. _

_"Keep me awake." She said. It was clearly an order, and yet somehow she made it sound like an offer he couldn't refuse._

_He stayed with her for ages, letting her talk for loads longer than her brothers ever did._

_She was five, and she'd forget all about it in a few weeks, but, in the way only children can, she'd fallen in love with him a little bit that night._

Lily smiled as she recalled the lost memory, and spoke, pulling Scorpius out of his brooding thoughts.

"Do you remember Teddy's fifteenth birthday party?" She asked. "I didn't want to fall asleep, and you sat with me. You let me bore you to death."

Scorpius laughed a little. "I wasn't bored. I was fascinated by you. You were this cute little kid, but you had lots to say, lots of opinions."

"I still do." Lily smiled.

"I'll bet. I'd forgotten all about that night."

"Me too, until a minute ago." Lily told him. "Thanks for it, by the way."

----

They could feel the heat emitting from the room, and both kept to the side, aware the people inside would be exiting, soon. Sure enough, Ron, Hermione and Goyle sped out of the door on a broom, which sank swiftly to the floor. A second later, Harry and Draco's broom crashed into the wall.

The two of them watched the exchange, and Lily felt Scorpius grabbed her arm and pull her further to the wall, as sounds came towards them. People were evidently duelling.

Lily gasped, a sound that was lost in the rest of the noise, as she recognised two of the fighters.

One was her uncle Percy. The other...

"Uncle Fred." She muttered.

"What?" Scorpius asked, watching as Lily's father, aunt and uncle ran forward to help.

"My - my uncle. My uncle George's twin. He died. Here." As they watched, the Death Eater's fell.

"Was that a joke, Perce?" Fred's voice carried over to them, and Lily jumped.

"Oh - no -" She stepped back, as the old story came back to her, trying to get away from the group. "I can't - I can't watch this -" She sounded horrified, disgusted.

She was too late. The castle shook, began to cave. She felt Scorpius grope for her arm, pull her back to the wall, and his arm was over her head as bits of rubble fell around them. Lily closed her eyes tightly, but nothing could block out the anguished scream that came when the castle had settled again.

She raised her head, watched her dad and aunt struggle to cross the floor towards the three people. Two alive, one dead...

"Lily." Scorpius murmured, well aware of what had happened. "Lily - come on -"

Lily tried to block out the voices as Scorpius pulled her away, the pain-filled cries chasing after them.

"I'm sorry." Scorpius murmured.

She didn't know where they were, how far they'd walked, but she still felt sick. One minute, his voice had been ringing out, filled with laughter, and the next...

"You shouldn't have had to see that. Hear it." Scorpius continued, sounding faintly sick himself.

"I'm OK." Lily replied, breaking away from him and leaning against a wall. "Really. I'm fine." She heard Scorpius make some kind of impatient noise; then she felt him lift the disillusionment charm from her.

"Hey!" She hurriedly brushed away the few tears that had leaked from her eyes out of shock. "We'll be seen - well _I'll_ be seen." This wasn't likely, as he had dragged her into an empty room.

"Yeah, you look fine." Scorpius said dryly, and lifted the charm from himself, too. "You just watched your uncle die." He told her impatiently. "You're not fine."

"I didn't see anything. I closed my eyes." Lily replied primly. "And I - It's not like I ever even knew him, is it? I'm OK."

"Liar." He muttered.

"Just shut up, OK?" Lily snapped. Someone nearby screamed, and Lily closed her eyes. "I need some air."

"We can't go outside." Scorpius told her quietly. "We won't get out of the castle alive, now. And even if we do -"

"Fine!" Lily cut him off, sliding down the wall until she was sat on the floor. "Fine, I don't care, we'll stay here all night."

Scorpius forced himself not to be annoyed by the bite in her voice, and lowered himself to the floor beside her. She knew why he didn't want to go back out there, and she could see the brooding look in his eyes, but she didn't push him, didn't mention it.

"We were stupid." She said after a minute. "To want to see this. To want to be here."

"Not stupid." Scorpius told her quietly. "Childish, immature. But not stupid."

"Why not?"

"Both our families were tied in this, into the war. It had a big impact on their lives, and on ours. It's normal to want to see it."

She shook her head, glad that they could now see each other. "If my dad knew I was here, he'd go mad. Why would I wish to see this? To hear people die..."

"Because you couldn't ever have imagined it would be like this." He replied, and awkwardly put his arm around her. "We couldn't have known."

She looked into his eyes, again glad that she could, that she'd be able to see his reaction to her question and asked, "What if we never get back?"


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks to all my reviewers. And the readers. But mostly the reviewers.

Edit: Yes, I was very stupid and posted my new chapter for "Ten Little Things" up here instead of this. Thanks for pointing that out, Winderlude, laura sedia and arantxabarrera.

Chapter 4

He didn't speak, just looked at her, and Lily saw in his eyes that he had no reply to her. Saw that he, too, wondered if they'd make it home. She gave up waiting for an answer, and instead scrambled to her feet, taking a deep breath to steady herself. They had to find a way out...

"Let's move." She told him.

"Are you joking?" Scorpius demanded, and he got to his feet, too, his eyes suddenly blazing with anger. "We just heard your uncle die, and you want to go into the fighting? What, you _like_ seeing death?"

He was directing his anger at her, she knew, but his words stung her, attacked her already raw emotions. She hadn't wanted to see her uncle die. She hadn't wanted to see anyone die. She'd thought she had, thought she wanted to experience what her parents had, but now she was here she realised she'd been wrong.

"I don't want to see death." She told him, her voice low and biting. "I want to go home. And don't take your anger out on me."

"What anger?" He snarled, then caught himself and fell silent. Unfortunately, Lily didn't. It was easy to direct her own emotions at him. The anger she felt towards herself for making that stupid wish was easy to displace upon him.

"Oh, please, do you think I couldn't sense your disgust?" She snapped. "He disgusted you, didn't he? Shamed you. I could feel it."

He knew she meant his father; he knew she was right.

"Shut up." He muttered.

"You watched him, whining, with no integrity, no backbone, to scared to face my _dad_, and then you watched him follow them, because he didn't have to guts to do what he actually wanted. What kind of man is he?" She was taunting him, cruelly, and she knew it, but her emotions had taken control of themselves.

"He's not like that anymore!" Scorpius snapped. "He was practically still a kid -"

"He was the same age as my dad, and my uncle Ron and auntie Hermione, and look what they did on this night. What they'd already done. And you know what else? I could sense your fear, too, Scorpius."

"What fear?" He sneered.

"Don't bother pretending, it was obvious, even if I couldn't see you. You were watching your pathetic excuse for a father, and thinking, _am I like that?_ Weren't you?"

He didn't reply, just stared blankly at her. Even as he wanted to deny it, he wondered how she knew.

"You reckon you could _sense_ that?" He asked, careful to keep his voice cutting.

"You didn't exactly hide it. You were reluctant to go up there in the first place. At the time, I thought you just wanted to see more, see the fighting, but then we saw your dad. It was in your voice, the disgust, the shame."

"And the fear? Was that there too?"

"No." She said, and suddenly her voice was different, the bite was gone, and she sounded almost sympathetic. "That I just...I just figured out."

"Well, good for you, super-witch." He muttered bitterly.

She didn't speak for a little while, just leaned back against the wall and wondered how she'd got into this situation. Stuck in the past, on a night that still haunted her parents, with Scorpius Malfoy, a boy she barely knew and somehow understood.

"You're not like him." She said finally, softly. "I mean, I don't know what he's like now. But that guy we just saw, you're nothing like him."

"How do you know?" He asked quietly.

"Well, for one thing, Al wouldn't hang around with you if you were." She said with a half smile. When he didn't responded, she tried again. "And I can just tell. That guy - your dad - I don't think he'd have tried to protect his friend's little sister, but isn't that why you came to the room of requirement with me? You...you're just different."

He shrugged, as if not believing her and wanting her to just stop talking. But she saw the flare of hope.

"I didn't want to go see more death." She told him after another silence. "When I said we should move - I wanted to find a way out, a way back."

"Oh." He said, and offered an apologetic smile. "Well...I thought we didn't know the way back?"

"I wanted to go back to where the plaque was." Lily explained. "I thought maybe -" She stopped talking when the castle shook again, more violently than the last time. She lost her balance, crashed into Scorpius, as bits of the ceiling began to rain down on them. Something struck her cheek; the sudden hot dampness on her face told her she was bleeding, as she squeezed her eyes shut again and tried to protect her head with her arms.

Finally, it stopped, the castle stilled, and Lily coughed as some of the dust settled in her throat.

"Are you OK?" Scorpius asked, turning her to face him. "You're bleeding." He stated, and she nodded, brushed a hand at the cut.

"It's just a scratch." She told him, ignoring the sting and hoping the blood would stop. "Are you alright?"

He nodded, brushing dust from his hair. "Lily, we have to get home, back to our time. This is too -" He broke off as a high, cold voice rang out.

"Severus Snape just died." Lily murmured, after Voldemort's first few words. "It's nearly over."

Scorpius barely heard her, focused on the voice. High. Not girlishly, as he'd assumed, but inhumane. Cruel. There was just something cruel in it. And confident, certain that he was going to win this war, control this world.

"We have to see him." He told Lily softly. She blinked.

"What?"

"We wished to see what he was like. What the night was like. We've seen the night - we need to see him before it's over."

"Are you crazy? We can't just walk up to Voldemort -"

"It's the only way -"

"You're just guessing that - and don't you dare interrupt me." He closed his mouth, and she fought a smirk. "Don't you think it's just a little bit risky to try get a look-see at Voldemort? Do you think he'd hesitate to kill us?"

"I want to see what he looks like." Scorpius replied stubbornly.

"I told you what he looks like!" Lily snapped. "I described him -"

"It's not the same. Come on, you were curious too -"

"I still am, I just don't intend to die here, tonight." She told him, her mother's stubborness shining through.

"You wait here then." Scorpius shrugged. "I'll be back when I've seen -"

"Hey - hey, we said we stick together." Lily interrupted. "You're going no where alone, mate."

He looked at her, raised one eyebrow in a clear challenge. "I thought you were too scared to come with me?"

He saw the fire leap into her eyes, and knew he'd pushed the right button.

"I'm not scared. You want to see Voldemort? Fine, lead the way, but don't come crying to me when we get killed."

He laughed, partly at what she'd said, partly at the absurdity of the situation.

"Where is he?"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"No one's going to notice us." Lily told him as they sought their way to the stairs. "Everyone's preoccupied at the moment."

"I think we'd be safer with the charms back on -"

"No." Lily said forcefully. "I don't like it, I don't like not being able to see you. It's weird." She sidestepped some fallen rubble, he jumped over more, and both wondered just how long it had taken to restore this mess into the castle they knew.

He lapsed into silence, close to sulking, as they hurried down the stairs.

"One quick look, remember." She told him, jumping over the bottom three steps. "Then we find our way home. I don't want to be here anymore."

_"Teddy, I don't wanna go to the Malfoy's house." Lily whined._

_"Come on, Lily, it's only for a few minutes." Teddy told her. "I just need to pick up my broom, and then we'll go."_

_She sighed loudly, but agreed._

_Teddy, nineteen now, flashed her a smile._

_"That's my girl. I'll be really quick, I promise." _

_She waited in the hallway while he and Draco went to get his broom. _

_"Mum, where's my - oh." Scorpius had hurtled down the stairs, but stopped and silenced when he saw her. "What are you doing here?"_

_"Teddy's getting his broom." Lily replied flatly. She'd already forgotten how much she'd liked him a few years before, and in her irritation she eyed him wearily. "I didn't want to come here."_

_"Oh. Why?"_

_She blinked, startled by the question, and shrugged. "I just...I just don't want to be here." She replied finally._

_"That's OK." He told her, with an almost shy smile. "Sometimes I don't want to be here, either."_

_She smiled, slightly confused, and he couldn't help but smile back._

Scorpius sent her a sideways look, wondering if she remembered that day. Really, now he thought about it, they'd had more encounters than he'd thought. And really, now he remembered them, he realised he liked her more than he'd thought.

"I don't want to be here, either." He murmured, and she looked at him with something close to confusion on her face.

"Deja vu." She mumbled, then almost tripped over yet more falling rubble. He caught her arm to stop her falling, and kept hold of it as they ran down the marble staircase. There were a few people scattered around the entrance hall, but as Lily had predicted, no one paid them any attention, far too preoccupied with transferring bodies into the great hall.

Lily forced herself not to look; Scorpius couldn't tear his eyes away.

They exited the castle and paused, looking around carefully, unsure if Voldemort's Death Eaters were still in the grounds. It appeared deserted, however, and they started towards the forest, slowly, cautiously.

Then Lily caught sight of something on the floor, and felt the bile rise in her throat as she stopped walking, unable to move, unable to look away from the bundle on the floor.

It was a girl - Scorpius judged her as around his own age. She'd never see her next birthday.

She was clearly dead, her eyes wide open and staring, horror clearly fixed upon her white, white face. There was nothing peaceful about her; she was laid awkwardly, crumpled to the floor, bearing the burns and cuts of the battle. The killing curse itself had left no mark; just an empty look in her eyes.

"Lily." Scorpius said softly, and tugged at her arm. "Lily - come on - let's go -"

She couldn't look away, couldn't move. She was trying, trying to close her eyes and block it out, but she couldn't. She'd never seen death before, never seen a body crumpled on the ground. She'd thought it was bad to hear her uncle's death, to be so close, but this...

"Lily." Scorpius said, more forcefully, and pulled her roughly away from the lifeless body. She didn't fight him, just let him lead her away, knew he was picking his way around more bodies. She finally managed to close her eyes, and struggled to fight the sickness that was rolling over her.

She wasn't aware that she was clinging to the front of his robes until he stopped walking; and yet she couldn't let go.

"It's OK." He murmured to her. "Lily...you're OK..."

"Feel sick." She mumbled, her eyes still closed, as though that alone could erase the horror. "She was dead."

"I know." He said weakly. "There's nothing we can do for her, Lily." He looked down at her, the deathly pale skin and tightly shut eyes.

"I know." She nodded, opening her eyes and meeting his. "Just let's - let's get in the forest, see him, and go."

"OK. Come on." She took a few deep breaths as they made their way closer to the forest, and steadied herself, which turned out to pointless, as the next body they came across was much, much worse.

The young boy looked almost inhuman now, with his face and robes torn and bloody, a whole sleeve missing, revealing the tattered remains of his arm - the dark skin was covered in blood, with large chunks of flesh clearly bitten off. His eyes and mouth were wide open - he had evidently died screaming. Unable to tear his gaze away, Scorpius was barely aware of Lily pulling away from him, staggering off to the side, as he wondered if this death was the work of Greyback the werewolf.

It was the sound of Lily retching that tore his attention from the broken body; he turned to see her clutching a large rock with one hand, and she threw up, bent double and trying to keep her hair from her face. He walked over in silence, gathered up the long red locks and waited while she was violently sick.

It subsided; she straightened up, wiping her face on her sleeve, pale and shaking, her breathing laboured and uneven.

"You alright?" He asked her, and was unsurprised when her temper spiked.

"Of course I'm not _alright_." She snapped, an undisguisable tremor in her voice. "I'm never going to be _alright,_ you idiot. Did you not see the guy? Did you not see the bloody mess that his face had become? Didn't you see the _bite marks_?"

"Yes, I did." He replied calmly, still fighting his own nausea, his stomach threatening to imitate Lily's.

"Well, I'm sorry I can't stay as cool as you, Malfoy." She snapped, and it was the use of his surname rather than the bite in her voice that he noticed. "Some of us can't look at something like that, someone who was practically eaten alive, and still stay completely composed. Some of us are going to see that poor mess in our dreams for years. But, of course, Draco's little prince is untouchable."

She lowered herself shakily to sit on the very same rock she'd used for support, and lay her face in her hands. Tears were silently tracking down her face, had been all through her outburst, though Scorpius didn't think she was aware of it.

"I'm sorry." She mumbled finally, without looking up. "I didn't mean any of it. I just..."

"I know." He replied.

"I lost it." She murmured.

"I know. I would've too, if you hadn't." He said softly, and she finally looked up at him, in confusion. "It's easier to hold yourself together when you're trying to support someone else." He shrugged. The "are-you-okay?" question, the one that people often asked despite cleare vidence to the contrary, was on the tip of his tongue before he caught himself.

"Oh. OK." Lily took a few more deep breaths, then stood. "Come on, let's go. Hopefully we won't find any more..."

"Forget about Voldemort." He sighed. "We'll just try and find our way back -"

"No." She met his gaze. "We came here to see. So let's go."

"Are you sure?" He asked, knowing he should protest more. But he wanted to see Voldemort, wanted this experience, and the look in her hazel eyes told him arguing would be fruitless.

"Yes. But I think we better put the charms back on before we go into the forest. I don't have a death wish." She told him dryly, and he smiled at her, before taking out his wand. She felt the charm, and seized his hand before he cast it on himself, so they wouldn't lose each other.

Unseen, they hurried towards the forest. "Which way?" Scorpius whispered as they entered, and Lily rolled her eyes.

"Why don't we follow the path the spiders carved out here?" She muttered, and pulled him towards the broken trees and trampled undergrowth the spiders had left when they'd joined the fight.

They slowed as they followed the path, freezing every time one of them broke a twig, or stumbled, terrified the noise would bring Death Eater's to investigate, and well aware that they could die, right here.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The sound of voices filled Lily with a sudden, intense, fear, but neither she nor Scorpius stopped. Her heart was beating rapidly against her chest, and Scorpius' grip was tight on her hand, as Lily wondered if this would be the place she died.

Voldemort's voice was easily recognisable, loud and angry, as he told his Death Eaters that Potter would come to him.

"I understand him!" He claimed. "He does not need to be brought to me...he will come of his own free will."

"You don't understand him at all." Lily hissed, causing Scorpius to grin a little as he imagined the fire that was undoubtedly in her eyes.

The two of them crept closer, careful where they stood and holding their breath, desperate to be unheard, uncaught.

And there he stood. In the centre of his followers, clearly the boss, the leader, the most powerful, the most arrogant.

Lily released Scorpius' hand - or he released hers, for neither was concentrating on the other anymore - and both moved closer to the clearing. Lily gripped a tree and stared at the man, understanding the fear he'd caused - for surely, this man was the product of a child's nightmares, or an element of a twisted horror tale, or something, anything, other than reality, other than something that could really walk the same earth as she did, who could really exist, really breathe and have a real heart that beat.

Scorpius understood, for the first time, why everyone said words weren't enough to describe this wizard, understood just why his father was so afraid, understood why few had dared to speak this creature's name.

And wondered, now that he had seen and heard, just why he'd been so curious. Neither he nor Lily would forget the things they'd witnessed tonight, and both would dream of this wizard, of the broken body with flesh stripped away, of the empty shell that life had abandoned, and of unstoppable green light.

What was wrong with them, he wondered, to have wanted to be here and see all of this, even after the looks they'd seen in their parents' eyes whenever they'd remembered this night.

It was then that he realised he no longer had hold of Lily, and suddenly he froze, because he had no idea where she was. And speaking would attract the Death Eaters, but he could hardly just wonder around and hope he bumped into her.

He looked around, in the hope that he would catch some movement, some ripple in the air, but saw none, for Lily was completely still, staring, transfixed, at Voldemort. She'd dreamed of this wazrd, when she was younger and James would tell her the stories, and yet she'd never imagined it correctly.

He wanted to leave. To go, to find their way home, and never think about this again. He'd have to risk it.

"Lily." He breathed it, barely made a sound, and not one of the Death Eaters heard. Unfortunately, neither did Lily. "Lily." He hissed, louder, and very nearly yelped when a cold hand gripped his.

"Be quiet." She hissed furiously.

He didn't bother pointing out that she had spoken too; instead he pulled her away from the clearing and she allowed him to, which was a relief. He'd suspected she might refuse and want to see more.

Neither of them dare to breathe until they were out of the forest, which, really, isn't a good idea. Then they were back in the grounds, and saw a few figures moving around in the darkness. Moving, both realised, the bodies, and helping the injured.

"That wasn't my best idea." He muttered.

"I want to go home." Lily whispered, trying not to look at the bundles littering the grounds. "Scorpius, please tell me you've thought of a way to get home?"

She sounded tired, he noticed. He felt the same. This whole experience was bitterly draining, and, really, Scorpius decided he could have done without it.

"No, I don't." He said, and tugged at Lily's hand to make her walk again. "Let's just get back into the castle, and to the plaque -"

"There is not plaque, remember?" She interrupted impatiently.

"I mean, to where the plaque to supposed to be. We'll start there."

"And if it doesn't work?"

Scorpius shrugged, then remembered she couldn't see him. "If worse comes to worse, we'll have to ask for help."

"Ask for...excuse me? Did you just suggest we ask someone _here_ for help? Like, what, I just breeze up to my sixteen year old mum and tell her I'm her future daughter, trapped in the past?"

"Not exactly, no -"

"Good, because doing that would just get us both hexed." Lily replied flatly, and Scorpius rolled his eyes.

"Let's just try to plaque. I mean, the wall."

"Great plan." Lily muttered, then fell silent as they crossed the threshold to the castle.

Death seemed to be everywhere; not just in the bodies in the Great Hall, or in the anguished sobs of the living, but in the very air. Death, cold and unforgiving, had coated the castle.

The two of them avoided looking into the Great Hall, instead hurrying to the wall.

"Well, bright spark, what's the plan?" Lily asked dryly as Scorpius ran his hand over the wall.

"Maybe..." He began, then sighed. "It can't be that simple. Can it? Its how we got here...but..."

"Scorpius? Hello, I'm here, talk to me, not yourself, 'k? What are you thinking?" Her voice was sharp, but he knew better, now, than to take it personally.

"I...well...could it be as simple as just asking to go home?"

"Asking?" Lily repeated. "Scorpius...it's a wall. Generally they don't listen to requests."

"Think about how we got here. We were both touching the plaque, and talking about wanting to be here. It could be that simple."

"Nothing's ever that simple." Lily replied.

"Just try it, OK? Put your hand on the wall."

She sighed, but obeyed.

"OK..." Scorpius cleared his throat self-consciously. "I - uh - I want to go back. To our time. I've seen enough."

Lily opened her mouth, then closed it, and withdrew her hand.

"Scorpius..." She said quietly. "Since...since we're here and all...maybe we could stay a bit longer."

"What?" His hand dropped from the wall as he turned to the sound of her voice. "Stay? Why the hell - you just said -"

"I know." She cut him off. "I know, but...well, since we _are_ here...why don't we just stay and watch the end?"

"Are you kidding? You're kidding, right? Just messing with my head."

"No. I want to see it end, I want to see us win." She told him, in a tone that implied he had no chance of winning this arguement.

"Lily, it's really dangerous, and -"

"I know. I don't care. I want to see this through." She told him, and he sighed.

"Fine. We'll stay, we'll watch, and, hey, if we're lucky, we won't die."

"Thank you." She said brightly. "We should just wait here for a bit - my dad should fake his death soon..."

"Great." Scorpius muttered darkly. "That's just great."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

They waited. There was nothing else to do. People wondered in and out of the castle, moving bodies with careful tenderness. Once or twice, someone would sit on the stairs and cry, or hold their head in their hands.

Seeing Professor McGonagall lower herself to a step and cradle her face for a long minute gave them a whole new perspective on the woman.

And then, as the living realised their time was almost up, despair and panic coated the air, as they moved their lost loved ones to safety and prepared to fight to the bitter, bloody end. And then families were crowding together, saying their goodbyes without speaking the actual words - the hugs were under the pretence of comfort, the "I love yous" under the guise of grief. But really, all knew that this could be their last chance to say those words, their last chance to hug another.

And then the voice rang out again; a voice neither Lily or Scorpius would forget, no matter what else they faced in their lives. The voice announcing Harry Potter's death.

Lily shivered, well aware that, for one little detail, her father could really have died this night.

"_The battle is won. You have lost half your fighters._" It was true; but the other half were prepared to fight and finish this, even if their lives ended too. "_My Death Eaters out number you, and the boy who lived is finished. There must be no war. Anyone who continues to resist, man, woman or child, will be slaughtered, as will every member of their family. Come out of the castle, now, kneel before me, and you shall be spared. Your parents and children, your brothers and sisters will live, and be forgiven, and you will join me in the new world we shall build together."_

It amazed Lily that there was no discussion, no hesitation, but a unified movement, as the survivors spilled out of the Great Hall, and then out of the castle. This was it, and they all knew it.

She and Scorpius allowed themselves to be swept away with the crowd, and out into the grounds. Lily's eyes were instantly drawn to the huge figure of Hagrid; and the body cradled in his arms. She heard the anguished way her mother called Harry's name, and wondered how her dad could lay there like that when Ginny was calling for him so desperately.

Because she didn't want to look at her father like that, she turned her attention away from him and Hagrid.

The survivors assembled, facing the Death Eaters, and fell silent when he called for it. The silencing charm prevented any from making a sound, and the crowd watched in silent horror as Hagrid was forced to lay the apparently dead body at Voldemort's feet.

She'd heard the story a thousand times or more, of how Neville faced up to Voldemort and killed his snake, but seeing it was different. And despite knowing by heart how it ended, Lily couldn't help but fear for his life.

The snake's head spun across the grounds, a light trail of blood following it through the air, with a cruel, near-beauty about it.

And then - and Lily never did figure out how it started, what signalled it - sound and movement erupted suddenly, and people were fighting. Flashes of light were skimming the crowd, meeting and missing targets, multi-coloured and, bizarrely, looking completely unthreatening. To look at the pretty lights, no one would guess they could bring pain, death and disfigurement.

The battle moved into the castle; as did Lily and Scorpius, clutching hands again in an attempt to stay together. And when the fighters spilled into the great hall, they followed.

The chaos continued, with curses, hexes, and jinxes flying out all over the place. Lily was enthralled, seeking out familiar faces in the crowd, barely aware of Scorpius beside her, until he cried out.

If he hadn't been so close to her, the sound would have been lost in the rest of the noise, but Lily heard it, and turned sharply towards him.

"Are you OK?" She asked, frantic, because she heard the pain in the sound, and she'd seen the flash of light from the corner of her eye. "Scorpius?"

"I'm fine." He assured her quickly, although the discomfort in his voice told her otherwise. "It just...grazed me...whatever it was."

"Scorpius, don't play stupid. Are you hurt?"

"No." He told her firmly. "I think it ripped my sleeve a bit. Grazed my arm. But it's fine." She sounded so concerned, and for some reason he really liked that.

He'd analyse it later.

"Scorpius -"

"Look!" Lily couldn't help but turn back to the crowd, most of whom had stopped moving, in time to hear Molly Weasley's call.

"Not my daughter, you bitch!"

And Lily forgot about Scorpius as she watched her grandmother - the maternal, temperamental, loving grandmother she'd always known - storm across the hall and begin duelling with Bellatrix Lestrange.

Somehow, whenever anyone had told her that her grandma had beat one of the most evil, most crazy, death eaters Voldemort had possessed, she'd wondered if maybe they were lying, because it didn't seem to fit. But now, she saw her grandma send curse after curse, even as she dodged them, and she understood - her grandma wasn't fighting for the cause, she was fighting to protect her kids, and _that_ made sense.

When the green light finally hit it's mark, Lily couldn't help but smile. Bellatrix Lestrange had taken so much from so many, and it was a matter of pride that it was Lily's own kin who'd finally ended her.

And then Voldemort turned, obviously ready to end Molly's life, and...

Lily smiled before Harry even revealed himself, because she knew he was going to, knew it was all nearly over.

She and Scorpius watched as Harry stepped up to Voldemort, as they spoke, and then...

She knew how it would end, and yet she couldn't help but hold her breath as Voldemort lifted his wand, as Harry lifted Draco's, and they both yelled the incantation each were best known for.

It was, Scorpius thought, anti-climatic in a way, that the most evil wizard to ever live simply crumpled to the floor like any ordinary man.

He and Lily were jostled by people who couldn't see them and didn't stop to wonder how they'd touched something that wasn't there, as the crowd surged forward to Harry, to hug him and speak to him, to grab his sleeve or clasp his shoulder.

Lily watched it all with a smile on her face, and then felt Scorpius tug her arm. "Let's go." He whispered.

"OK." She murmured, and together they left the hall, the survivors, and walked into the entrance hall. They crossed to the wall where the plaque should have stood, and then, as if they'd known what to do all along, both placed a hand on the wall.

"We're ready now." Lily murmured. "We've seen it all..."

And the wall began to swirl, unseen anyone but Lily and Scorpius, and then they were spinning, and then they'd both his the ground, rather painfully.

The disillusionment charm had been lost in the journey, apparently, as they could both see each other. And, Lily thought as she looked at him, he was a mess.

His robes were torn on his left upper arm, a gaping rip revealing angry red skin and a cut, where the jinx had grazed him. He had several more rips in his robes, from, she assumed, the falling rubble, and his face and hair were filthy.

She looked no better. Scorpius noted the deep gash running the length of her face, her dirty and torn robes, the dusty tangle of her hair, and the grime on her face, clearly showing the tear tracks.

"You don't look so hot." Lily commented, as they both struggled to their feet.

"Right back at you. You should get that cut checked out."

"And _you_ should get the burn checked out." Lily retorted, as she rubbed her sleeve on her face, eradicating the tear tracks as the muck from her sleeve was transferred to her face. "I think I'll have to throw these robes."

"Probably." Scorpius nodded.

"Lily! Al - she's here!" Both turned to see Hugo running down the marble staircase, closely followed by Al. Both boys stopped in front of her.

"Where hell have you been?" Al demanded. "You weren't on the map - we've been going spare -"

"Cyndra said you went to watch the storm." Hugo told her. "It was _hours_ ago, the storm's long gone, and we've been looking everywhere for you."

"Rose was ready to wake the castle and get the teachers to find you -"

"Where the _hell_ have you been?" Hugo demanded, finally taking in her appearance. "What've you done to your face?"

Al finally saw Scorpius, stood behind Lily.

"What did you do?" He demanded irrationally, causing Lily to finally find her voice.

"He hasn't done anything Al. If you be quiet a minute, I'll tell you what happened.

"Al, she needs the hospital wing." Hugo said, disregarding her. "Look - she's got a big gash on her face -"

"Lily, how'd you get hurt?" Al demanded.

"Scorpius is hurt too." Hugo added. "And they're both filthy."

"Will you two be quiet and let me explain!" Lily cried, loud enough to silence her brother and cousin. "Thank you. And where's Rose - I don't want her worrying."

"Look, why don't we go to the hospital wing, you can get Rose - and whoever else you've got looking for her - and we'll explain." Scorpius said. Al, with all his protective big brother instincts at work, simply looked at Scorpius with distrust, despite the two of them having been friends for years.

"That's a good plan." Hugo said, and took the map from Al. "Rose and Cyndra are near the hospital wing, we'll detour and pick them up. Come on." He grabbed Lily's arm and pulled her towards the stairs; the two older boys followed.

----

Lily winced again as the aged Madam Promfrey dabbed at her wounds with a piece of cotton wool and a thick, mint-green, cream.

"You know, you could deal with Scorpius first." She said hopefully. The matron didn't answer, just carried on dabbing the cream, seemingly oblivious to the way it stung Lily.

"It doesn't make sense." Al said to Scorpius. "It just - it doesn't. Why would you two by the only ones to go back, in all twenty-five years since that night?"

"Hasn't been a full twenty-five years yet." Rose pointed out. Al ignored her.

"And _how_ can it even happen -"

"Look, we don't know." Lily said impatiently. "It just did. Maybe when dad gets here, he'll know." She eyed Neville. "Not that you had to call my parents."

"It's standard procedure." Neville told her. "And your brother seemed to think it was necessary."

"Yeah, well, dad installed a stupid over-proctiveness in both Al and James." Lily shrugged, as Madam Promfrey drew back.

"Leave that for a few minutes." She told Lily. "It's clean; I'll seal it in a moment. Now, young man, let me see that burn." She said to Scorpius, who hesitently offered his arm.

"I bet James is coming too, isn't he?" Lily asked, and Neville nodded. "I thought so." She rolled her eyes, pretending to be annoyed, but really felt nothing but relief. Ever since she was a little girl, her brothers made her feel safer than even her parents, and somehow knowing James was on his way made her feel a lot more secure.

"It's not like I died or anything." She said. "No need to make a big deal -"

The doors crashed open at that moment; James Potter strode inside, closely followed by his parents.

"Are you OK?" Lily's brother demanded, as he sat next to her on the bed. "What happened?" He inspected the gash on her face critically. "Shouldn't that be sealed by now? Is it cursed or something?"

"I'm fine." Lily replied, then looked at her parents and repeated the statement.

"What happened?" Harry and Ginny asked in unison. Lily was fast becomeing sick of hearing that question.

"Scorpius?" All turned back to the doorway as Draco Malfoy and his wife walked through it. "Are you OK? What happened?" He barely glanced at Lily or her family, focussed on his son.

"Why don't we step outside?" Neville suggested. "I'll explain, and these two can have their injuries treated..."

"I'll stay here." James replied instantly, and Lily rolled her eyes, even as she visibly relaxed.


	8. Chapter 8

**IMPORTANT - Well, I don't know how I managed it, but I made a big mistake yeaterday, and posted the wrong chapter. Jeez, I don't know what's up with me lately, I don't usually make stupid mistakes like that. Anyway, the chapter I posted was chapter nine. This is chapter eight, so try to forget what you read, OK...I'm just going to go repeatedly bang my head against the wall...**

Chapter 8

"Well?" Lily asked, when Neville and their parents re-entered the room, accompanied by Professor McGonagall, who looked concerned. "Do you know _why_ it happened? How?"

"We'll investigate." Professor McGonagall said, in her usual curt, controlled voice. Lily remembered how that same voice had sounded as it screamed at the sight of her father's dead body.

"We never did anything to make the memorial anything but a memorial." Harry agreed. He sounded confused, worried, and yet somehow impressed.

"Well someone did." Draco said curtly. "Otherwise this wouldn't have happened, would it? Your memorial could have got them killed."

"Maybe your son did something, did you think of that?" Harry snapped irrationally.

"Like what?" Draco replied. "Where would he have learned magic like that?"

"Hey - both of you, stop it." Astoria said loudly before Harry could retort. "There's no point trying to blame anyone - this isn't Scorpius' fault, Lily's fault, or Harry's fault."

"Hogwarts still has secrets." Neville agreed. "I told you what they told me - they wished to see that night, and they did."

"So Hogwarts grants wishes now?" Ginny asked, half sarcastic. She had, while Harry and Draco had argued, crossed to the bed next to Lily's and sat facing her daughter.

"No." Neville replied. "But...well, I guess the castle...remembers. And it showed them."

"Well I don't like it." Ginny muttered quietly, and she and Harry were both remembering another object cloaked in memories.

----

Lily woke, sitting bolt upright and letting out a childish scream. She was six, and a few hours previously, James had told her the story of the battle at Hogwarts, the end of the war. Subsequently, her dreams had been filled with curses and giants and spiders and Death Eaters.

Their parents were still out, at some charity thing Lily was too young to care about. Teddy was babysitting, but he was downstairs and hadn't heard her scream. Her brothers had, however, and they rushed to her room.

"What's wrong? Are you OK?" Al demanded as they both dived onto her bed.

"I had a nightmare." Lily said quietly. Al looked angrily at James.

"I told you to stop telling her stuff. It scares her."

"I'm sorry, Lily." James said sincerely. "I didn't mean to scare you."

Lily looked around the room, scared she'd see big spiders lurking in the corner, or a giant's face pressed against her window. "Will the giants and the spiders and the bad guys come here?" She asked, her eyes wide and her tone hushed.

"No." Albus assured her. "They're all gone now, Lily. No one's going to hurt us."

"Besides," James said, because he saw she was unconvinced, "even if they did, Al and me would protect you."

"Yeah, we'll keep you safe." Al agreed quickly.

"Go back to sleep now." James said quietly, and Lily shook her head.

"Scared." Lily said softly.

And so her brothers lay on either side of her, and knowing they were there, she felt safe, and slept easy.

----

Madam Promfrey healed both Lily and Scorpius' respective injures fully, but ordered them to spend the remainder of the night in the hospital wing, despite their protests. As it was nearing two in the morning, James refused to leave until daylight, and the collective parents were with McGonagall, discussing the events and, most likely, trying to figure out how to prevent it happening again.

"Get some sleep, Lily." James said softly. "You look shattered." He glanced at Scorpius, who'd been rather quiet. "You too, mate."

"Are you lot going to stay here?" Lily asked, casting her gaze over her brothers, Hugo, Rose and Cyndra.

"No, they're not." Madam Promfrey replied. "There isn't enough room in here. And you're disturbing my other patient." She gestured towards a third year boy in a bed at the other side of the room, deeply asleep, with a faint purple rash on his face.

"I'm staying." James replied and offered her a winning smile.

"Used to having you here, aren't I?" Madam Promfrey replied, though with a slight smile. "Always here with Quidditch injures..."

"I'm staying too." Al added.

"Fine. The rest of you - out."

----

She awoke about an hour after she'd fallen asleep, covered in sweat and her eyes frantic.

She dreamt of the bodies.

"Lily?" James said quietly, moving forwards in the darkness. "Are you OK?"

"Nightmare." She muttered, and willed herself to relax.

"It's OK." Al whispered, from her other side. "We're here."

"I know." She murmured, and allowed sleep to claim her again.

Scorpius heard her breathing change, deepen, even, and relaxed again. Back to staring at the ceiling then, unable to sleep, and lost in his thoughts.

----

"You expect it to stay secret?" Lily asked. "Secrets never stay secret in this place."

Harry opened his mouth to speak; Scorpius beat him to it.

"We're the only ones who know, though. Us in this room. How's anyone gonna find out?" He asked Lily.

"They find out." Lily replied, talking directly to him now. "I don't know how, but someone always finds out."

"If no one here tells anyone, they won't." Scorpius said firmly. "And I'm not going to tell anyone."

"Uh-huh. I'm sure. Half the school probably knows we were here - I bet someone saw our parents and James arrive - and what are you going to tell your buddies when they ask where you've been, what happened to you?"

"I don't know - I'll think of something."

"You'll lie." Lily stated, and he nodded. "_Well_, I see why the hat didn't put you in Hufflepuff. Loyalty clearly isn't your strong point."

Scorpius opened his mouth, looking annoyed, then closed it, half-grinned. "You're doing that on purpose, aren't you?"

"Winding you up? Yes. I've discovered it's rather easy and extremely amusing." Lily replied lightly, and smirked at him.

The rest of the room exchanged looks, then Draco cleared his throat. Lily and Scorpius both jumped, and looked suddenly uncomfortable.

"Anyway, you'll both have to lie - or avoid questions, or something." Harry said distractedly, looking thoughtfully at his daughter. "If this gets out, they'll be students messing with the memorial day and night."

"Fine. Sure." Lily replied, and Scorpius nodded.

"We've put a magical barrier around it anyway." Professor McGonagall put in. "To prevent sutdents getting within a foot of it."

"Well, we better go." Astoria Malfoy said finally.

"Yeah, I guess." Ginny murmured. "That means you too, James."

"I _know_ mum." James muttered, seeming closer to the twelve year old boy he'd been that the nineteen year old he was. "Come here, little sister." He added, and hugged her tightly. "Bye."

"Bye, James." Lily murmured as he released her.

"Whatever you do, don't get caught." He warned her with a grin. "Goes for you too, Al."

"See you at Christmas." Al replied.

"Uh-huh. You look after her, right?"

"Course."

There was a round of parental goodbyes, then both sets of parents, and James, left. Neither Scorpius or Lily heard Astoria murmur to Ginny; "They seem to be getting on well, don't they?" Nor did they hear Ginny's light laugh and reply. "Lily and Scorpius? Extremely well..."


	9. Chapter 9

Well, yeah, heres chapter nine. You know, the one that half of you already read because I'm a complete idiot? Yep, that one. It should hopefully make more sense now that it's in the right place. And it's the second-to-last chapter, too. Oh, yeah, and thanks to you lot for not calling me stupid, an idiot, a moron, or any other variation in your reviews. It was very nice of you. Even if I did deserve to be called all those things, even if I called myself all those things, and even if you probably thought it.

Chapter 9

They left the hospital wing shortly after their parents left the school; despite both Lily and Scorpius best efforts to talk their way out of it, they still had to attend lessons. To Lily's surprise, no one seemed to even know her parents had rushed to the school in the middle of the night, never mind anything else.

"At this rate, I'll lose all faith the Hogwarts grapevine." She said idly. Beside her, Scorpius laughed. They'd bumped into each other on the way to dinner, stopped for a quick hello, how are you, ect.

They'd nearly missed dinner by now, though neither was aware of it. If they had been, if they'd stopped to think, they may wonder how one night, a handful of hours in someone else's memories, could have made friends out of near strangers. They may have noticed the bond they'd formed, may have analysed it, even feared it.

But they didn't, for the human race is often oblivious to such matters.

"We don't want people to know, remember?" He replied. "Are you attention seeking, maybe?"

"_No._" She replied, without pretending to be annoyed. "I just really thought everyone would find out. That's Hogwarts."

"Well not this time." He shrugged.

"Looks that way." She looked at him thoughtfully. "You don't look so great."

"Thank you." He replied solemly.

She laughed, and for some reason it made his smile widen. "No, I mean - you look tired, that's all."

"Well, in case you forgot, we spent a lot of the night running around in the past."

"Ah, yes, I remember now." She replied, with mock seriousness. "No, really, didn't you sleep at all?"

"Not much." He admitted. "But hey, I'd rather look tired than be dead."

"Uh-huh. Me too, if it came down to it. But I told you we wouldn't die."

"No you didn't." He replied instantly, although unsure.

"Yes I did." She replied, her voice certain even though she wasn't sure if she was actually right.

"No you didn't." He repeated.

"I'm pretty certain I did. And you can't prove I didn't. So guess what? I win." She smirked, fighting back a laugh.

"What? How do you win -"

"I just do." She interrupted, half laughing. "Anyway, I'm going to eat. Buh-bye."

And, smirking, she walked away before he could argue.

He stood there for a few minutes, just smiling to himself. She made him smile often.

"Scorpius?" He'd been about to stop forward when Al called him; turning, Scorpius saw his friend walking towards him.

"Hey."

"You OK?" Al asked as the two of them started forward slowly.

"Yeah. Fine. Ah..."

"So, um, Lily said you were pretty determined to protect her while you were...you know."

"I was."

"It annoyed her. But not really." Albus said, as though the statement made perfect sense. "Anyway, thanks." Scorpius just nodded. A brief silence passed before Al spoke again. "James thinks you were just looking out for her 'cause you've known her forever and she's just a kid."

Scorpius knew, from the tone of Al's voice, that this was some kind of test, but he didn't see exactly what he was supposed to do. So he replied with the first thing he could think of.

"Lily's sixteen; she's not a kid." He pointed out.

"I know." Al smirked. "But for James, she'll always be the eight year old who cried when he left for Hogwarts. We're both protective of her, but he's a hell of a lot worse. And he's...uncharacteristically naive about her, too. You know, when to comes to...boys." He said the word with a faint disgust, and Scorpius decided Al was more protective that he'd admit. "But you're kinda lucky he is, 'cause James would break your nose just for having this thing for her. I won't, though."

Al's tone was casual, almost friendly, and it took his actual words several seconds to sink in. Then Scorpius stopped walking and turned to Al with an almost horrified look on his face.

"I don't have a thing for Lily -" He began, causing a small smile to appear on Al's face.

"Please, Scorpius, it's obvious. Even our parents saw it - and yours. Like I said, James is really naive about it, but even he'd have clicked eventually, if he'd spent a bit longer with you two."

"I don't -"

"Yes, you do. And she likes you, too."

"I _don't_ -" Although now, he was beginning to doubt himself.

"If I hadn't have figured it out yesterday, I'd know now. You look as guilty as hell." Al sounded amused. "Look, mate, I just wanted to warn you not to mess her around. That's 'cause she's my sister. As your friend, I'll tell you not to mess this up."

"Mess it up?" Scorpius repeated, looking rather like he'd had a recent bludger injury.

"Yeah. You know, how you get all nervous and stupid around girls you like, say something stupid and end up pushing them away 'cause of your humiliation?" Albus replied lightly. "Well, pretending your current interest isn't my sister, I'll warn you to try not doing that this time."

And, laughing silently, Al left the other boy in stunned silence.

----

Several days passed, with their secret safe and their sleep uneasy.

And then it rained.

Lily saw it from the window, and couldn't tear her eyes away. There was no storm; just a dark sky and heavy water, but she loved the rain. And she wanted to go outside, to stand in the rain, feel the rain, and pretend that her sleep wasn't plagued with torn, blood covered faces and empty, broken bodies.

"I'm going outside." She said, standing. Instantly, Hugo and Cyndra looked up.

"Lily, don't -" Hugo began.

"I promise not to touch the memorial." She told him, rolling her eyes. "I'm going outside; I'll be fine. See you in a bit."

"Do you think I should tell Al?" Hugo asked Cyndra, the second the portrait hole closed behind Lily.

"No. She'll kill you." Cyndra replied. "She'll be fine."

----

There was no hanging around in the doorway this time; she wanted to feel the rain. So she walked, slowly, towards the lake.

She hadn't thought about the memories the lawn would conjure; she reached the place where they'd found the girl. Lily didn't know how she knew this was the exact spot, but she did. She forced her gaze away from the ground, looking towards the forest, and spotted the rock she'd used for support, then sat on.

This wasn't why she'd come outside, she reminded herself, and turned back towards the lake, walking slowly as the rain soaked her. She'd forgotten her cloak again; Cyndra hadn't reminded her like she usually did. Her hair was already curling under the heavy rain, but she loved it.

"Lily?" She turned at the sound of name, saw Scorpius a few feet behind her. She smiled without thinking about it.

"Hi." She said when he reached her. "Nice night, isn't it?"

"The best." He replied solemnly. "I wanted to talk to you."

"Here I am." She told him. "Talk."

"I spoke to Al earlier."

"Mm-hmm. Me too." She said lightly, because he looked far too serious. "What did he say?"

"He talked about - about you, and James -"

"The middle child syndrome again? I thought he was over all that."

"What? No - But I want to hear more on that topic later." He replied with interest, raising another smile. "No, he was just saying that, um, he thinks there's a - a thing, between us."

He could tell, instantly, that he'd surprised her.

"Really?" She sounded curious, he noted.

"Yeah." He nodded awkwardly, and she remained silent.

"Is there?" She asked finally. He had been avoiding her gaze, but when he looked at her he saw she was looking right at him. He shifted, uncomfortable.

"You tell me." He replied. Good answer, he silently congratulated himself.

"I asked first." She replied evenly. Better answer, he silently congratulated her.

"Right. Ah..."

She tried to hide the smile as he struggled to find words, faint stains of colour on his face.

"Scorpius? How about this. I promise I won't laugh, or get mad, or anything, 'k?" It was her best patronising tone, in the hopes of breaking the awkwardness.

He tried to glare at her, but the smirk reduced it's effectiveness. "Sometimes I'd love to curse you." He told her.

"I know. But I'd just get right back up and curse you worse."

"I believe that." He nodded.

"Look, Scorpius, if you have something you want to say, then just say it. Dragging it out's just annoying me and making your blush worse."

"I'm not blushing!" He replied instantly.

"That's what you think." She replied, and smirked when he flushed deeper, raising his hands to feel the heat of his skin. "Scorpius? Leave your face alone -" He dropped his hands from his face instantly. "And say what you've got to say, OK?"

He cleared his throat. "You bug me." He said, in an attempt to reduce the awkardness he felt. Humour lept into her eyes. He liked that, he realised. Liked how her every emotion was there, easy to read, in her eyes.

"You bug me too." She replied, without missing a beat. "That all you wanted to say?"

"No. You know what I'm trying to say. Why don't you make it easier?"

"'Cause I love to watch people suffer, and get to do so way too rarely." She told him, her eyes still alight with amusement.

"Fine. I'll suffer, you'll watch, and you'll be happy." He replied.

"Thank you."

"I like you." He said, fruitlessly fighting the blush. He was almost eighteen for goodness' sake. He shouldn't be _blushing_ like a young girl.

"Good." She replied lightly. "Took your time, but good."

He waited, just looking at her, having decided she had to say the words back to him. For all her sarcasm and insults, he realised, she was trying her hide her vulnerability. And hadn't she said - before they'd been hurtled into the past - that half the people around her were only there because of her surname? Trust issues, he decided. She was bound to have trust issues.

Good, because he was a little screwed up too.

Aren't we all?

She rolled her eyes, sighed loudly. "You're going to make me say it, aren't you?"

He nodded. "I love to watch people suffer."

"Hey, those are my words, buddy. Don't steal them." When he only smiled, she rolled her eyes again. "Fine, Malfoy, I like you."

He stepped closer. "Those are my words. Now who's stealing?"

She laughed, and they both moved closer still...


	10. Chapter 10

I'm not very pleased with this, to be honest, but it'll do.

The very last chapter, guys, so thanks to all of you for sticking with this, and for your reviews. They really do mean a lot to me.

Chapter 10

"Do you think there's any way we could...not tell Ron this?" Harry Potter asked his wife hopefully.

"I doubt it." Ginny replied, putting her daughter's letter down on the kitchen table. "Why?"

Harry shrugged. "You know...that bet..."

Ginny rolled her eyes in the same way her daughter often did. "You mean the one you made when Lily was about four? Where you bet that Rose would end up with Scorpius Malfoy, and he bet that Lily would?"

"Neither of us were serious, you know. Never expected this to happen." Harry murmured.

"I know. But it has, so you'll have to pay up." Ginny smirked. Then her expression softened. "You're OK with this, aren't you? Lily and Scorpius?"

"I guess." Harry replied. "He's an alright kid. Especially considering his father."

"Uh-huh. And she's your daughter." Ginny said, understanding.

"I know. And I really want to break his legs. But no, it's fine." Truth be told, he didn't really know how to feel. His daughter, his little girl, with a boyfriend?

"You can't tell James to break his legs either." Ginny told him, rising to refill her cup.

"I won't." Harry replied. "I wont tell him not to, either -"

"Yes you will. Lily's happy with the guy. James'll accept that."

"Ha. He's worse than me." Harry muttered. Ginny didn't reply; it was undeniable.

----

James sat in silence and stared at his mother in shock. "Scorpius?" He managed finally. "Like...Teddy's Scorpius? And Lily? But - she's just a kid, and he's Al's age, that's not right -"

"James, she's sixteen." Ginny replied gently, hiding her amusement. "There's only a couple of years between them."

"But...But she's not old enough for a boyfriend." James said indignantly.

"Uh-huh. Right. And, tell me James, how old were you when you got together with that girl? What was her name? Lizzie?"

"Thirteen, but -"

"And she was?" Ginny interrupted.

"Thirteen." James sighed. "But I was just a kid, Scorpius isn't -"

"James, you and Meredith have been together for nearly two years now." Harry pointed out. "You were only seventeen -"

James sat back on the sofa and scowled. Apparently, he wasn't going to win this one.

----

The Hogwarts grapevine was in overdrive. Lily Potter and Scorpius Malfoy? The son of a Death Eater and the daughter of Voldemort's defeater?

They knew, of course, that Scorpius was friends with Al, that he'd grown up in contact with Harry's godson, and therefore Harry and his own kids. But this...Well, this was something the whole school was caught up in.

"You'd think they'd be over it by now." Scorpius commented, as he and Lily sat by the lake, one rainy afternoon. Lily brushed her soaking hair from her face, and shrugged. "They were the same when my parents' got together, apparently. Some things never change."

"Yeah. I kinda like that." Scorpius shrugged. "Something to depend on."

"I guess...though why you'd ever need to depend on a shallow, obsessive group of teenagers is beyond me." Lily replied.

"One day, you'll have to depend on those very same shallow, obsessive group of teenagers, and then you'll see." Scorpius replied idly.

"Uh-huh. I'm sure."

"Well, you might."

"If I ever do, I promise I'll beg for your forgiveness." Lily replied flatly.

"The day you beg for forgiveness is the day dementors wonder around in bikinis." He replied dryly.

She laughed loudly at that. "Where did that come from? Did you make that up?"

He didn't answer; simply smiled at her.

Some would have said it was a strange place for a "date"; the rain was falling gradually heavier, the wind was bitter, and the grounds were freezing. But the rain was their thing.

It had brought them together, it was something they had in common, and it provided them with solitude, as few ventured out in this weather. Several years from now, they would name their first born daughter "Rain" and not care what anyone thought of it.

Some may have also said no girl in their right mind would want to meet their new boyfriend with soaking curls clinging to their face and neck, with robes weighed down by the water, and with droplets clinging to her skin, smudging her eyeliner.

But that had, after all, seen each other at their worst, and really, why not sit here candidly?

"I can't believe they still haven't figured out the plaque yet." Lily said, a few minutes later.

"Or found any trace of...well, any magic, on it." Scorpius nodded. "I'm surprised they even believe us."

"Are you kidding? We gave them details we'd only know if we'd been there. You described that - that guy, and his injures perfectly. That was something my dad hadn't even seen."

"Yeah. I still remember McGonagall's face when I described it. I kinda wish I hadn't mentioned it though; you could see all the memories come back to her." Both their tones had turned serious, and both were carefully not picuring the body they were talking of. The nightmares were enough.

"I know. But she's strong, she'll get through the memories. She got through the real thing. And she might not have believed us completely if you hadn't." Lily replied quietly.

"Yeah, right. You're Harry Potter's kid, remember? No one would dare doubt you..."

She was laughing as she splashed lake water at him.

----

The memorial plaque was, at that very moment, being examined by several teachers. They would find no trace of any spell, charm or curse upon it. They would find no trace of magic around the cool metal. For the magic of this memorial, of everything it stood for, was far beyond them. They would never understand just how it had happened; and the memorial would remain still until it found any more it deemed worthy of it's gift.

_Some things we may never understand._


End file.
